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proposal moved forward. <br /> <br />Mayor Torrey noted Ms. Bettman's concern about adult bookstores, and asked if defeat of the proposal <br />opened the City up to a legal challenge based on freedom of speech. City Attorney Jerome Lidz said no. <br /> <br />Mayor Torrey thought the neighborhood leaders were making a mistake in saying refinement plans could <br />not be challenged. If that was so, refinement plans should state so. They do not. There was nothing <br />wrong with the proposal or the property owner bringing it forward. He believed the council's decision <br />should be based on the findings. <br /> <br /> Ms. Bettman, seconded by Ms. Nathanson, moved to direct the City Manager to bring <br /> back to the City Council a resolution to deny the applications to amend the Laurel Hill <br /> Refinement Plan Land Use Map to change the designation of the subject site, Assessor's <br /> Map 18-03-03-23, Tax Lots 199, 200, and 300, from Low-Density Residential to Com- <br /> mercial, and to deny the application to change the subject site on the Eugene Zoning Map <br /> from R-1 Low-Density Residential to C-2 Community Commercial. <br /> <br />Mayor Torrey called for comments on the motion. <br /> <br />Ms. Bettman maintained that a portion of the property could be developed with residential if it was done <br />carefully. She was aware of a similarly constrained property that had been developed residentially. Ms. <br />Bettman said it was not the City Council's job to ensure that residents make a profit or could maximize <br />the value of their investment. If the property was remote or marginal, it was that way when it was bought. <br />She did not want to set a precedent by approving a request to amend a refinement plan when it did not fill <br />a public need only to provide a financial windfall for a property owner. The proposal did not fill a public <br />need, it was not justified, and it would negatively impact the neighbors. Ms. Bettman said that neighbor- <br />hoods should be able to have the predictability created by refinement plans. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly noted the staff statement that the City had processed site-specific refinement plan amendments <br />over the years, but he maintained they were different from this one. In the case of the Arlie Crescent <br />Village development, the developer worked closely with the neighborhood, and residents had subse- <br />quently supported his proposal. He did not think the comparison was good. <br /> <br /> Speaking to the remarks of Mr. Meisner, Mr. Kelly agreed any study should look beyond the area in <br /> question. He believed that residents were not opposed to commercial uses but were concerned about how <br /> they were laid out. <br /> <br /> Speaking to the remarks of Mr. Pap6, Mr. Kelly said the action the council might take could be legal but it <br /> would not necessarily be right or doing the best thing for the citizens. <br /> <br /> Speaking to. Ms. Nathanson's comments, Mr. Kelly acknowledged the parcel's orientation, but the <br /> decision must be made on the criteria, and one among many was Laurel Hill Valley Policy 5. <br /> <br /> Speaking to the remarks of Ms. Solomon, Mr. Kelly did not think the examination of the refinement plan <br /> could occur in parallel with the development. <br /> <br /> Speaking to the remarks of Mayor Torrey, Mr. Kelly did not interpret the neighborhood leaders' <br /> statements as saying the City should not change the refinement plans, but that they should not be changed <br /> in a piecemeal fashion. <br /> <br /> MINUTES--Eugene City Council December 6, 2004 Page 8 <br /> Work Session <br /> <br /> <br />